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HOME - FACTS - TABLES - VIDEOS - INFOGRAPHICS - AGENCIES - RESEARCH <br />Cho, Eunice Hyunhye; Tia I<oonse; and Anthony Mischel. (2015). Hollow Victories: The Crisis in Collecting <br />Unpaid Wages for California's Workers. National Employment Law Project; University of California, Los <br />Angeles. <br />Kev Finding: Only 42% of unpaid wages due to wage theft were recovered after being awarded to victims by the California <br />Department of Labor Standards Enforcement. In response to low rates of repayment of stolen wages, wage liens can be <br />used to prevent employers from dissolving their company to avoid repayment. When a wage lien is in place, a company <br />dissolving or declaring bankruptcy must retain funds to pay the lien before liquidating. <br />Gleeson, Shannon; Ruth Silver Taube; and Charlotte Noss. (2014). Santa Clara County Wage Theft Report. <br />University of California, Santa Cruz; Santa Clara Law. <br />Kev Finding: Filing wage liens is often the responsibility of local government officials. To bring successful wage theft claims, <br />individuals and classes can engage with local government officials for support in ensuring repayment. <br />Ordonez, Franco and Mandy Locke. (2014). "IRS' 'Safe Harbor' Loophole Frustrates Those Fighting Labor <br />Tax Cheats." McClatchy D. C. Bureau. <br />Kev Finding: Due to the "safe harbor" provision in the Revenue Act, revenue officers charged with investigating worker <br />misclassification and payroll fraud often find themselves unable to administer penalties or change employer practices. <br />Some IRS examiners describe the provision as the "greatest impediment" to fighting worker misclassification. <br />Casey, Robert and Eva Lewis. ( ). Independent Contractors and Employee Misclassification in the <br />Construction Industry. Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart. <br />Kev Finding: The Illinois Employee Classification Act assumes all construction workers are employees unless the employing <br />party can prove they are independent contractors. In the first 3 years after enactment, $1.3 million in penalties was <br />recovered for misclassified workers. This bill bars known violators from bidding on public project for up to 4 years. <br />Cox, Lauren; Emily Timm; and Cristina Tzintzun. (2009). Building Austin, Building Injustice. Workers <br />Defense Project; The University of Texas at Austin. <br />Kev Finding: Texas' so-called "right-to-work" law has severely reduced union density in construction. However, when <br />surveyed, union construction workers were 58% more likely to know about their labor rights than non -unionized workers. <br />Government Accountability Office (GAO). (2009). Employee Misclassification: Improved Coordination, <br />Outreach, and Targeting Could Better Ensure Detection and Prevention. <br />Kev Finding: Misclassification of workers enables other forms of wage theft, such as minimum wage theft. These minimum <br />wage violations are investigated under the Fair Labor Standards Act, which does not address misclassification. <br />Weil, David and Amanda Pyles. (2006). "Why Complain? Complaints, Compliance, and the Problem of <br />Enforcement in the U.S. Workplace." Comparative Labor Law and Policy Journal, 27(59): 59-92. <br />Kev Finding: For every 130 minimum wage violations in the United States, only one complaint is filed with the appropriate <br />regulatory agency. Explanations for this gap include the fear of retaliation from employers and lack of unionization. <br />19 <br />